Activities for Entertainment and Leisure during the Georgian Era

Activities for Entertainment and Leisure during the Georgian Era: A lot of activities of leisure and pastime were done in the Georgian era to escape the everyday routine. There were numerous options for people to choose from.

victorian-circus-ropewalk

Entertainment and Leisure during the Georgian Era

Theatre

One of the main attraction was the theatre. In the 18th century, theatre flourished. Large auditoriums were built in London and huge crowds flocked in to watch plays and listen to musical performances.

Alcohol and food were consumed in great amounts while attending the theatre. Some of the famous theatres in London at the time were London’s Drury Lane, Covent Garden and the Haymarket theatres.

The rich and poor audiences sat in different sections of the theatre according to the price of the ticket.

Gardens

Another leisure activity was the pleasure garden where formal garden boasted long sweeping avenues. Many people visited these gardens and mingled amongst themselves.

The gardens were very stylish with fountains and flowers planted everywhere. This was a major source of attraction for ladies who wanted a break from the hot and humid summer evenings.

Circus

Circuses and fairs were also major attractions. They marked important dates on the calendar since they were present on those days. They hosted small markets and also had acrobats, performing animals, food stalls, and alcohol.

Performers costumes

Men were particularly interested in animal baiting. This involved timing up an animal to a stake and dogs were sent to attack it. The bull was one of the most common animals for this activity.

Another acuity was cockfighting. Here, cocks were sent to fight other cocks in social pens. These birds were specially reared for this reason.